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Welkin in the Wizarding World (COMPLETED)	By : welkin_cooper Category: HP Canon Characters paired with Original Characters > Het - Male/Female Views: 14600 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters in it. I don't benefit financially from the production or display of this work of fanfiction in any way.

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Make a Wish, Severus

Welkin seriously considers Severus's wish to have another child. Hermione broods over her split from Julien. Voldemort plans ahead for a Druid fertility ceremony concerning Welkin. Severus receives unexpected birthday gifts from Aberforth and Albus.

Author's Note: This chapter also includes my original characters of Mathias Burke and Violet Murdoch.

Welkin intently studied the aggressive angles of Severus's face as flickering light from the fireplace dimly illuminated him. His pale skin was stretched taut over the outlines of his prominent cheekbones—smooth skin that glowed bright in high contrast set against the deep midnight hue of the long hair which framed his face in glorious disarray. His hawkish nose helped make his expression in sleep, as it often was in consciousness, appear dark and brooding. The total effect was mesmerizing.

He really is exquisite, she established to her satisfaction. It isn't just my imagination or because I love him.

It was so difficult not to reach out to touch him to stir him awake so that she could sink into the deep underground mine of those coal black eyes again. She wanted to watch his icy expression turn warm as he recognized that it was her lying there beside him. It was always there—that same look of wonder and gratitude at still having her—no matter what acerbic comment might issue from between his lips to greet her. That look made everything perfect and worthwhile. It meant she was loved and needed by him. It made her ecstatically happy, no matter what smartass comment she greeted him with in return. They both knew better.

"Severus?" she whispered softly. His long dark eyelashes flickered a little at the sound. She could see his eyes move back and forth beneath his closed eyelids as if he were studying one of his treasured ancient magical texts. His lips moved soundlessly as he dreamed. What is he dreaming of? Is it me? Is it Voldemort? Albus, and the dilemma he still faced regarding him? Whatever it was, she would be there to chase the shadows away when he woke.

Hermione stood at the window down the hallway outside the entrance to the Gryffindor common room. She pulled the shawl she had wrapped around the shoulders of her dressing gown tighter against the chill. Outside, a new fall of snow had deposited nearly another half foot, topping it off at nearly a foot. It was still almost two hours before dawn, but the light from the moon reflected off of the snow, brightening the landscape so that she could see the tracks left by various animals as they had emerged the forest to forage and circled back again.

She thought of returning to bed, but she wasn't exhausted enough to sleep yet, and lying in her bed staring up at the draperies of her canopy bed would only cause her to think of Julien with more focus than having something else to look at would. That, and a recent addiction to the drama of her heartache, was why she was out here staring out the window when most of the castle was sleeping, peacefully wrapped in dreams.

She'd been over it and over it in her mind. It should have been an easy puzzle to solve, the riddle of figuring out why Julien had lied to her. She'd heard it said that she was the brightest witch of her age. Some said it seriously, and some with a jealous, bitter edge that disturbed her. But if she was, why did the answer still elude her? And the library hadn't helped this time. This time the answers weren't found in any of the thousands of books housed there.

The door to the common room opened, but she didn't turn to see who it was breaking the rules along with her. It was probably the same one who always found a reason to roam the castle at night when he wanted to.

"Hermione? Is that you?"

At least my instincts are still accurate about some things, she comforted herself.

Harry walked over to her and stood by her side.

"Is there anything I can do?" he asked her finally, when the silence made him uncomfortable. "Do you want to talk about it?" He sounded as if he wasn't certain that he wanted to hear it if she did. But it didn't matter, because she couldn't talk about it to him—her secret love she couldn't name, who had apparently never really been hers to claim.

What's wrong with me? Why doesn't anybody want me? she thought. The self-pity was oddly comforting and bolstered her. Snape... Julien... Ron... I'll show them all. I don't need any of them.

"No... go back to bed... nothing's wrong, Harry," she lied. The break in her voice proved to her how awful she was at lying.

"We're worried about you, Hermione... Ron and I," Harry told her. "You haven't been coming to meals, and you've missed some classes. Ron's really worried," he added.

"I can see exactly how worried about me that he is... still snoring in his bed, isn't he?" Hermione said bitterly.

"Well... er... uh... you know Ron," Harry finished weakly.

"Yes... I know Ron... too well," Hermione sighed. "I'm going back to bed... I have Arithmancy homework to catch up on tomorrow, but I'll see you at breakfast," she said, sounding more like the logical and efficient Hermione he knew.

She turned and stalked back to the portrait of the disgruntled Fat Lady to give the password to her, and Harry watched her disappear through the portal.

"Severus?" Welkin tested again, when she thought he was no longer deep inside his dream.

He stirred a little and tightened his grip on her.

"Happy birthday... to... you... Happy birthday... to... you," she sang softly. She'd sung nearly the whole of it when he finally spoke.

"Welkin... when I open my eyes, I am not going to see another life-sized goat cake, am I?" he queried.

"No, silly. That would be boring to do the same thing twice. I've got more imagination than that," she assured him.

He opened one eye suspiciously and then, when he saw that the immediate vicinity of their bed was clear of any such embarrassments, opened the other and sat up yawning.

"No attempts at organizing a party this year, I hope?" he double-checked.

"No, Severus... they don't deserve it after last year. It's their loss. I made a cake, but it's just for us. You can have whatever you want for your birthday this year. What do you want?"

He looked at her incredulously for asking such a ridiculous question.

"Besides that, I mean. You get sex all the time. What else do you want for your birthday? I want to give you something special."

"I do not think that you really want to know," Snape told her.

"Of course, I do," Welkin insisted. "What is it that you want?"

Severus slowly unclasped his hands from behind her and brought one around to rest lightly on her stomach as those dark eyes watched her face for a sign that she understood him.

Welkin blushed under his scrutiny. "That takes longer than a day, you know," she said, trying to buy time to let him down easy. He was asking her for the one thing she didn't think it would be wise to grant at this time with so much uncertainty about Voldemort and the fate of the Wizarding world.

"I would be willing to wait the requisite number of months to view my birthday gift," he assured her. "A gift so precious would be well worth waiting for. Lie with me and at least discuss it." He pulled her down again against the pillows.

"Why are you so adamant about this? Don't you see what a mistake it could be right now?" she asked.

He stroked her hair as she looked up at him, a conflicted expression on her lovely face. He knew that she wanted to give him this, but she was afraid of the circumstance they found themselves in.

"I have made many mistakes, my love, and have managed to survive them all to date. Do you not see how right this might be—for us and for Sullivan?"

"Sully would probably like a little brother," Welkin admitted. "But that doesn't—"

"A witch," Snape insisted, just as he did each time he continually broached the subject. "It shall be a witch, and I shall name her."

"Yeah... so you keep telling me." She pressed her lips together thoughtfully. "What would you name her? I mean... if we did have a witch someday?" she asked with curiosity.

"I shall name her Samantha... Samantha Morgana," Severus said with a determined look, as if daring her to object.

"Samantha," Welkin repeated, testing the way that it sounded to her. It was a nice, traditional name, unlike her own, and she liked that about it. He had even thought about following her family tradition with the middle name of Morgana for the firstborn female. She snuggled against Severus as the thoughts whirled through her head. "I suppose that we could... call her Mandy, for short," she said, unaware that Severus was smiling at her, thinking of the seed he had planted, in her head at least, for the time being.

"Are you certain about these calculations?" Voldemort pressed.

"Well, I... yes, milord," the old wizard told him nervously, fearful that it was not the answer that the Dark Lord wanted to hear.

It was not, but Voldemort needed his counsel and his expertise with the ritual, and he could not afford to dispose of him in a fit of pique until he had served his purpose.

"The ancient ceremony must be undertaken at midnight on the day of the alignment to ensure that the seed is planted and yields the proper harvest. Conception would be possible at other times, of course, but the Druid texts are quite specific for the sort of child you wish to accomplish. It must be at the alignment of the proper planets and in the full of the moon. Otherwise, I cannot assure you that a male child of sufficient strength and power will result."

Voldemort slammed the book that he was reading shut, causing his unwilling house guest to jerk and involuntarily shrink away from him.

"Jumpy, Mathias? You have no need to be... as long as you serve me well and tell no one of what we have discussed. Do you understand?"

Voldemort had been careful not to reveal exactly why he was asking about ancient Druid fertility rites. Even if the old man was enough of a fool that he sought to reveal their conversation to someone else, they would have no way of knowing exactly what he had planned, or who he had planned it for. The hex he would place on him to silence him would see to that.

"Yes, milord... I understand. No one but yourself will be privy to this knowledge," he assured him, shrinking into himself to make his body a smaller and hopefully less appealing target.

"Good... then you will accept my hospitality at Malfoy Manor until the proper time, of course," Voldemort said.

"But... but, milord... such an alignment will not happen until next year!" Mathias Burke protested, nervously fingering the medallion around his neck. “How is my absence to be explained? To my family... to my colleagues?”

Voldemort glared at him with angry red eyes until he dropped his head in reluctant obeisance.

“Let me attend to those details, Mathias. I want you at hand and well-prepared to lead the ceremony when the time arrives. Your further study of and future preparations to perform that duty when the proper candidate is chosen will consume your time until then.”

"It is Thursday, Wells. I cannot ignore the classes which I am obligated to teach for the next two days just because it is my birthday," Severus argued.

"Yes, you can. I cleared it with Albus last week," Welkin grinned. "He thinks you could do with a few days off, lounging on a nice, warm island. It's his birthday gift to you. We can't disappoint him by turning it down," she conveniently reasoned.

She struggled with Sully to get his arms into his fur-lined parka. "Come on, Sully... be a good boy and put on your nice warm coat so we can go to Auntie Vi's house... I told her we'd drop you off this morning so she wouldn't have to get out in the cold."

"Auntie Vi?" Snape grimaced. "Do you really think that it is advisable or appropriate for Sullivan to address his nanny in such an overly familiar fashion?"

"Yes, and I also think it's advisable that you not waste time arguing about it with me. If you want to take anything else with us, just put it in the suitcase and then close and fasten it for me, please."

Snape rooted through her packing job and noted a couple of omissions. "You have failed to include the bathing garment I purchased for you," he reported.

"Won't need it," she replied, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively at him. "It's a very small, very private Muggle-free and totally unplottable island that Albus recommended. He said it's located south of the Canary Islands. It's warm, and we can run around completely naked if we want to."

"Naaa... ked," Sully echoed. "Sully naked," he announced, plucking at the front of the offending coat in an attempt to remove it.

"Sully better not be naked... not unless you want to freeze your little wizard wee-wee off out there in that bad old snowstorm... Brrrrr! Jack Frost gonna get you!" Welkin grabbed him and pretended to attack his stomach in imitation of the fictitious Jack as Sully giggled wildly and struggled with her under her onslaught.

"You can take off your coat when we get to Auntie Vi's," she promised as she suspended the attack. She put on his stocking cap and pulled it down over his ears, securing it with a minor Sticking Charm as an afterthought. Sure, the parka had a hood, but he'd probably find a way to pull that down. Better safe than sorry.

She rose to put on her own traveling cloak and fastened it securely at the neck. "I guess we're ready. Get your cloak and grab the bag, Severus. I'll take Sully."

She gathered Sully into her arms. "Snake... Snake... Snake, Daddy!" he motioned frantically to Snape.

Snape retrieved Snake, the battered stuffed toy, from the bed and gave him to Sully, who clutched him in his arms tightly. "Snake naked, Daddy," he informed him.

"I believe that Sullivan has acquired a new favorite word, Welkin," Severus said urbanely.

"It will be no trouble at all to keep him until you return," Violet said. "He'll be great company. He's a little rascal, but he's a good boy. Aren't you, Sully?"

Sully nodded gravely. "Sully good," he affirmed as he looked around the room for anything new that he had not yet gotten his curious little hands on. "Cake," he said, spotting the birthday cake on the side table.

Severus walked over to the table and studied the chocolate iced confection and its profusion of candles with a critic's eye. Crooked red roses and one single silver snake slithering among them decorated the top, along with shaky lettering wishing him a happy natal day. He smiled to himself at the crude, but obviously loving, effort she had made by her own hand instead of using magic.

"I'm not so hot on decorating, but it'll taste good," Welkin promised, following him to wrap an arm around his waist. "I wanted to at least have a cake for you before we left on our trip, so I made it yesterday in the kitchen at Hogwarts, and Violet brought it back with her when she dropped off Sully. Let me light the candles." She waved a hand over the top, and each candle lit in perfect sequence.

"Make a wish, Severus," she invited, smiling at him. He was struck with the sudden odd feeling that she knew exactly what he was thinking, even though she was not inside his mind.

"Wells," he said hesitantly, "I noticed that there was one other thing which you forgot to pack. I thought that I should make you aware of that fact before I perform this ridiculous superstitious ritual, as I should not like to assume too much on a simple mistaken omission on your part and waste my... wish."

"It wasn't a mistake." Welkin shrugged. "I ran out of contraceptive potion yesterday, and I just decided that I didn't have time to make more with all the birthday plans and everything, and it's not really that important, I guess." She shrugged again. "What will be... will be... don't you think?"

"What I think is that perhaps this is not such a ridiculous tradition after all," Snape said. He arched an eyebrow, stared at her meaningfully for a moment, bent and blew out all the candles in one breath.

"Don't you two worry. It'll be no more trouble to look after two little ones," Violet said helpfully. "But I don't know about that goat. I don't mind keeping her at all, but I'll have to charge you extra to board her."

"Goat? What goat?" Snape asked warily.

Violet drew her wand and made a circular motion with it in the direction of the guest room. A moment later there was the clatter of hooves and a sleek black goat galloped into the room and made her usual beeline for Severus.

"Aberforth Dumbledore delivered the bonny little thing this morning, along with her feed. He said she might as well be yours since she was so attached to you," Violet said.

"I have no intention of adopting this stubborn, obnoxious creature," Snape said, as it rubbed against him affectionately. "It must be returned to the Hog's Head immediately."

"But, Severus, it's a gift. You can't return it. You'll hurt Aberforth's feelings," Welkin protested. "And Persephone will be heartbroken if you reject her like that."

"I will not be held responsible for the emotional well-being of a goat," Snape insisted as he watched Sully toddle over to Persephone in obvious fascination.

"Seffie!" he shouted, pointing at her, and he turned his head to look at Welkin for confirmation.

"Yes, that's right, Sully... like your birthday cake. This is the real Persephone. Be careful though... she might bite," Welkin warned, kneeling to hold him back.

She needn't have worried. Persephone approached Sully's outstretched hand gingerly, sniffing his scent. It was the same scent as his father's, and she recognized the small one as his. She nuzzled the baby playfully with her head and stood docilely as Welkin let Sully pet her with gentle pats on her back.

"Severus, please... Sully loves Persephone... and you did say that you couldn't think of any reason why he couldn't have a suitable pet when I asked you about it," Welkin begged. "And Violet did say she can board her here for us. Sully could play with her almost every day."

"I do not think that a goat is an appropriate companion for Sullivan," Snape said. "I would prefer that he have something more traditional and dignified... more befitting his future stature in the Wizarding community."

"A pet is not supposed to be a status symbol, Severus. It's supposed to be for love and to teach him responsibility and caring for something," Welkin instructed.

Severus was about to try to counter that sentimental argument when Sully suddenly let his grasp on Snake loosen in favor of throwing his arms around the goat's neck. He lay his head against her back lovingly.

"Argue with that, why don't you?" Welkin said smugly.

"The wee one does seem to have taken a shine to the animal, Professor Snape," Violet chimed in.

"Oh, very well! I shall adopt the damned goat! I see that I am in the minority in having the common sense to see the flaws in this arrangement," Snape groused.

Welkin leapt up to hug and kiss him. "Sometimes you just have to go with your gut and take a leap of faith that everything will turn out the way it should," she told him. "She won't be any trouble for you, I promise."

"We have both taken a leap of faith in the future today, I suppose," Snape considered, thinking of her abandoning her contraception. "Yours will require a bigger commitment in the long term. I will take that into account and make this lesser adjustment."

"Thank you, Severus... Happy birthday, sweetie," Welkin grinned.

"Seffie naked," Sully concluded to Violet, making her laugh.

"Happy birthday, indeed, Professor. Shall I serve the cake?" Mrs. Murdoch asked. "I have a wee bit of elderberry elf wine to go with it. I think we all might like a drop."
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Welkin in the Wizarding World (COMPLETED)

Make a Wish, Severus